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Beach goers on South Beach check out one of the iconic lifeguard stands as bands of rain fall in the distance, Friday on Miami Beach. All of Florida is under a state of emergency and authorities are urging residents to stockpile a week's worth of food and supplies as Hurricane Dorian gathers strength and aims to slam the state as soon as Monday as a Category 4 storm.

Lyle Fidgeon boards windows at the Ocean Grill in preparation for Hurricane Dorian, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019, in Vero Beach, Fla. The National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast as a major hurricane.

Tourist Loren Fantasia from Baltimore, swings on the beach before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019. Forecasters said the hurricane is expected to keep on strengthening and become a Category 3 later in the day.

Rich DiGiulio removes an awning from the Mulligans Beach House Bar & Grill in preparation for Hurricane Dorian, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019, in Vero Beach, Fla. The National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast as a major hurricane.

James Wolfe, 72, left, and Elaine Wolfe, 65, install shutters on their home in Vero Beach, Fla, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast over the weekend as a major hurricane.

In this Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019 photo, Jessica Armesto holds her one-year-old daughter, Mila's, at their home in Miami. Jessica was hoping that Mila could meet a real-life Minnie Mouse at Disney World before Hurricane Dorian derailed her plans. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Dorian could hit the Florida coast over the weekend as a major hurricane.

Hurricane Dorian is now a Category 2 hurricane and is expected to continue strengthening over the weekend. Forecasters expect Dorian to become a major hurricane Friday and make landfall on Florida's east coast on Monday night.

FILE - In this Nov. 24, 2017, file photo shows President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla. Trump’s prized resort in Florida is potentially sitting directly in the path of Hurricane Dorian, which is forecast to become an extremely destructive storm. The resort, which is currently closed for the summer, is on the wealthy barrier island of Palm Beach.

Workers board up a shop’s window front as they make preparations for the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019. Forecasters said the hurricane is expected to keep on strengthening and become a Category 3 later in the day.

Hurricane Dorian strengthens to a Category 3 storm, posing a significant threat to Florida; residents filled sandbags and stocked up on emergency items from hardware supply stores as the threat of Dorian loomed.

Fierce Category 4 Dorian strengthens en route to Bahamas

Beach goers on South Beach check out one of the iconic lifeguard stands as bands of rain fall in the distance, Friday on Miami Beach. All of Florida is under a state of emergency and authorities are urging residents to stockpile a week's worth of food and supplies as Hurricane Dorian gathers strength and aims to slam the state as soon as Monday as a Category 4 storm.

AP PHOTO BY WILFREDO LEE

Lyle Fidgeon boards windows at the Ocean Grill in preparation for Hurricane Dorian, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019, in Vero Beach, Fla. The National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast as a major hurricane.

Lynne Sladky

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis urges residents to listen to their local officials as they decide whether to evacuate before Hurricane Dorian hits the state early next week.

Tourist Loren Fantasia from Baltimore, swings on the beach before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019. Forecasters said the hurricane is expected to keep on strengthening and become a Category 3 later in the day.

Ramon Espinosa

Rich DiGiulio removes an awning from the Mulligans Beach House Bar & Grill in preparation for Hurricane Dorian, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019, in Vero Beach, Fla. The National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast as a major hurricane.

James Wolfe, 72, left, and Elaine Wolfe, 65, install shutters on their home in Vero Beach, Fla, Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Dorian could hit the Florida coast over the weekend as a major hurricane.

Ellis Rua

In this Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019 photo, Jessica Armesto holds her one-year-old daughter, Mila's, at their home in Miami. Jessica was hoping that Mila could meet a real-life Minnie Mouse at Disney World before Hurricane Dorian derailed her plans. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Hurricane Dorian could hit the Florida coast over the weekend as a major hurricane.

Marcus Lim

Matt Rohrer loads sandbags in the back of his vehicle for his home in preparation for Hurricane Dorian Friday, Aug. 30, 2019, in Flagler Beach, Fla.

John Raoux

Hurricane Dorian is now a Category 2 hurricane and is expected to continue strengthening over the weekend. Forecasters expect Dorian to become a major hurricane Friday and make landfall on Florida's east coast on Monday night.

FILE - In this Nov. 24, 2017, file photo shows President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla. Trump’s prized resort in Florida is potentially sitting directly in the path of Hurricane Dorian, which is forecast to become an extremely destructive storm. The resort, which is currently closed for the summer, is on the wealthy barrier island of Palm Beach.

Alex Brandon

Florida residents packed sandbags on Thursday as an increasingly menacing-looking Hurricane Dorian threatened to broadside the state over Labor Day weekend.

Workers board up a shop’s window front as they make preparations for the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas, Friday, Aug. 30, 2019. Forecasters said the hurricane is expected to keep on strengthening and become a Category 3 later in the day.

Ramon Espinosa

President Donald Trump says he's spoken with the governors of Florida and Georgia ahead of the expected landfall of a potentially devastating Hurricane Dorian this weekend.

The sounds of hammers and cash registers echoed across the Bahamas on Friday as the archipelago that lies just southeast of Florida rushed to prepare for Hurricane Dorian.

Hurricane Dorian strengthens to a Category 3 storm, posing a significant threat to Florida; residents filled sandbags and stocked up on emergency items from hardware supply stores as the threat of Dorian loomed.

MIAMI (AP) — Hurricane Dorian has gained fearsome new muscle as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm, bearing down on the northwestern Bahamas early Saturday en route to Florida's east coast.

Millions of people in Florida, along with the state's Walt Disney World and President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort, are in the potential crosshairs of the hurricane. Forecasters say Dorian, which had top sustained winds of 145 mph (230 kph) Saturday morning, will threaten the Florida peninsula late Monday or early Tuesday.

But the National Hurricane Center in Miami cautioned that its meteorologists remain uncertain whether Dorian would make a devastating direct strike on the state's east coast or inflict a glancing blow. Some of the more reliable computer models predicted a late turn northward that would have Dorian hug the Florida coast.

However, the risk may be increasing elsewhere. The National Hurricane Center's advisory released at 8 a.m. Saturday EDT warned the possibility of "strong winds and life-threatening storm surge" is increasing along Georgia and South Carolina's coasts.

The faint hope of dodging Dorian's fury came Friday, even as the storm ratcheted up from a menacing Category 3 hurricane to an even more dangerous Category 4. That raised fears Dorian could become the most powerful hurricane to hit Florida's east coast in nearly 30 years.

National Hurricane Center projections showed Dorian hitting roughly near Fort Pierce, some 70 miles (113 kilometers) north of Mar-a-Lago, then running along the coastline as it moved north. But forecasters cautioned that the storm's track remains still highly uncertain and even a small deviation could put Dorian offshore — or well inland.

Trump has declared a state of emergency in Florida and authorized the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster-relief efforts. He told reporters that "Mar-a-Lago can handle itself" and that he is more worried about Florida.

"This is big and is growing, and it still has some time to get worse," Julio Vasquez said at a Miami fast-food joint next to a gas station that had run out of fuel. "No one knows what can really happen. This is serious."

As Dorian closed in, Labor Day weekend plans were upended. Major airlines began allowing travelers to change their reservations without fees. The big cruise lines began rerouting their ships. Disney World and Orlando's other resorts found themselves in the storm's projected path.

Still, with Dorian days away and its track uncertain, Disney and other major resorts held off announcing any closings, and Florida authorities ordered no immediate mass evacuations.

"Sometimes if you evacuate too soon, you may evacuate into the path of the storm if it changes," Gov. Ron DeSantis said.

But some counties announced mandatory evacuations ahead of time on Friday. Brevard County and Martin County officials said residents of barrier islands, mobile homes and low-lying areas would be under a mandatory evacuation order beginning Sunday morning. The Brevard County order includes the Kennedy Space Center. Indian River County officials said they will recommend residents of its barrier island voluntarily evacuate once hurricane warnings are issued.

Homeowners and businesses rushed to cover their windows with plywood. Supermarkets ran out of bottled water, and long lines formed at gas stations, with some fuel shortages reported.

At a Publix supermarket in Cocoa Beach, Ed Ciecirski of the customer service department said the pharmacy was extra busy with people rushing to fill prescriptions. The grocery was rationing bottled water and had run out of dry ice.

"It's hairy," he said.

Early Saturday, Dorian was centered 445 miles (715 kilometers) east of West Palm Beach. It was moving northwest at 12 mph (17 kph). Forecasters warned that its slow movement means Florida could face a prolonged wallop of wind, storm surge and torrential rain.

Coastal areas of the southeastern United States could get 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 centimeters) of rain, with 18 inches (46 centimeters) in some places, triggering life-threatening flash floods, the hurricane center said.

Also imperiled were the Bahamas, where canned food and bottled water were disappearing quickly from shelves and the sound of hammering echoed across the islands as people boarded up their homes. Dorian was expected to hit the northwestern part of the Bahamas by Sunday with the potential for life-threatening storm surge that could raise water levels 15 feet (5 meters) above normal.

"Do not be foolish and try to brave out this hurricane," Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said. "The price you may pay for not evacuating is your life."

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